


Line Up the Pieces

by samjohnsson



Category: Alphas
Genre: Canadian Shack, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-01-10
Updated: 2012-01-10
Packaged: 2017-10-29 07:41:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/317416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/samjohnsson/pseuds/samjohnsson
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The knight is the oddest of all chess pieces. Due to the way it moves, it can threaten or defend from the most unusual locations.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Line Up the Pieces

**Author's Note:**

> Set after Original Sin, and draws on characters from several eps. Written for Cesperanza's 10th Anniversary Canadian Shack Challenge.

This wasn’t according to any sort of plan he had come up with.

There was going to be heat after Doc’s little reveal. The whole team knew that. Bill’s wife Jeannie had protection as the wife of a federal agent, the Pirzad family was visiting relatives in Ankara, and Sandra Bell has been invited at the last minute to speak at a spectrum care providers conference in Ireland. Nobody was worried about Patti - anyone who did research on Cameron knew she wouldn’t be leverage of any sort.

But Tyler? Tyler would be leverage. Especially since his recent pitching and batting averages were providing a second exemplar to the Zoe-inspired theory that Alpha abilities were genetically dominant. At least the six months stable employment with Rosen (and regular child support payments via the government) had calmed Patti down enough that she actually suggested that he have custody of Tyler for a month, supposedly at the prompting of one of her lawyer’s consultants. He didn’t trust the sudden turn of heart - and had his suspicions that the benevolence would eventually be traced back to a certain Civil War escapee - but any sniper would tell you that you take the shot you’re given.

Nina, actually, was the one who came up with the base of this idea. It was her idea to get in touch with Skylar (and wasn’t Rosen surprised to know that they were still in contact) and see if she would take Tyler in until the results of Rosen’s actions were clear. Fortunately, Skylar agreed with the proviso that all her guests would have to “play nice.” Her directions involved driving to Saint Lewis, Labrador and turning north when their wheels got wet, and he wasn’t going to be picky. Tyler was so hyped up at the thought of spending time with him that Cameron thought they could’ve done laps ups and down the Long Island Expressway and he’d be content - that he was going to a camp in another country with his dad had him ecstatic.

Cameron only knew he was at the right location when the dirt road ended at a reasonably-sized cabin with a roof line fairly bristling with dishes and antennas, complete with a towheaded little girl sitting on the porch and reading a textbook titled “Quantum” something-or-other. She was fidgeting with something in her hand, but he couldn’t tell what.

Tyler got out of the car before he did, and Cameron watched as Zoe glanced up and hurled what she was fidgeting with inaccurately toward the teen. Tyler caught it after it bounced off a low-hanging branch and held it up to his father.

It.

A slightly scratched quarter.

Oh, hell. That’s what Skylar meant.

Cameron tensed up and started checking sight-lines and looking for trigger points, as he called out to the young girl, “Zoe, where’s your mom?”

“She went to town to re-supply. Her friend is keeping an eye on me,” she said, hardly looking up from her book.

Motioning Tyler to stay near the car, he carefully walked up to Zoe and knelt in front of her. “Is her friend a really tall guy, really thin, and twitchy?”

As he finished speaking, he watched as a cabin window slid shut, snapping the stick holding it open, causing one of the fragments to knock a wind chime-looking thing off its hook to land directly in the middle of Zoe’s book. Cameron jumped back from the porch, pulling Zoe behind him, as Marcus stepped out the cabin’s door.

“Hello, Cameron. It’s good to see you again.” Before he could reply, Zoe stepped out from behind him.

“Mr. Ayres, mom said no breaking her stuff!” She held up the metal tube. “Unless you like ‘squitos. Besides, she also said to play nice!” She glared at him. Cameron heard his son snickering behind him, and was hard-pressed to contain his own. He was shocked, however, when Ayres kneeled down in front of Zoe.

“You’re right, Miss Adams. I shouldn’t have done that. I apologize for interrupting your reading. If you want, I’ll let you help me work out all the trajectories for my next project.”

Zoe nodded and brushed past Marcus, walking inside. Marcus sat down in her previous spot on the porch steps and looked straight at Cameron.

“She is right. I should apologize to you... and is that your son? I assume he’s like us? We could play catch later. Winner is the one with the most ricochets.”

Cameron stared at Marcus consideringly, then turned to Tyler. “Take the bags in, Ty, and ask Zoe really nicely if she’ll show you where to put them.” He turned back, watching while Tyler stepped up to the porch and nodded approvingly as Marcus slid out of his way. “Why are you here, Marcus? This just another game for you to set up?”

“Hardly. I set the initial domino with Rosen a while ago and left. Everything after that was his own action. Including, if what Ms. Adams tells me is true, his forthcoming testimony before Congress.” He paused, looking at the ground. “He’s a hard one to push over. You have to let him fall naturally.”

“You planned this?”

“Of course not. People are annoying to predict. Objects are so much easier. Besides, I’ve known Dr. Rosen for seven years, and he has stared back into the Abyss. I’ve been listening for what the government has had his - your - little group do, and I know how he plays chess. This was almost...linear.” Marcus shrugged, looking down at something in his hands. “I’m just here because the dominos don’t always fall square on their path and Skylar was...worried about Zoe. It is difficult to defend with just a queen and a pawn. There are so many ways to capture one or the other.” He tossed the object in a low arc. Cameron caught it and looked to see that it was a white knight, as Marcus continued quietly. “Retaining a pair of knights can make all the difference during the mid-game while protecting the pawns before they’re promoted.”

Cameron looked back down at the chess piece, nodded, and sat on the steps next to Marcus.


End file.
